It’s time to enjoy the refreshing flavors of spring with this Spring Fling Cocktail! This drink is perfect to pair with warmer days in the sunshine, birds chirping, and flowers blooming. We’ve got two spirits here – gin and green chartreuse – for plenty of that bright, herbaceous flavor. That’s paired with lime juice, simple syrup, and cucumber juice, then shaken up with a couple dashes of orange bitters, fresh basil leaves, and and egg white to achieve that silky and gorgeous foam on top and a silky mouthfeel throughout. You could definitely say it’s a sexy spring drink 😉

The conventional wisdom about shaken cocktails that aren’t poured over ice is that you should double strain them for the best possible mouthfeel. The second straining comes in when you pour from the cocktail shaker through the primary strainer (usually holes at the top of your shaker or using a Hawthorne strainer) and then while pouring into the glass, you also pour it through a finer mesh strainer to remove any tiny pieces of ice, herbs, or citrus pulp.

While I totally agree that double straining is necessary for something like a Sidecar or Southside, I’m on the fence when it comes to cocktails that include egg whites. Not because I don’t want to strain out those little bits of ice and pulp and herbs like you can see on the right in the video below, but because you lose so much foam. And with egg white cocktails, foam = silky smooth mouthfeel.

Check out this video showing a side-by-side comparison of double versus single straining this cocktail specifically!

Here’s what you’ll need to recreate this Spring Fling Cocktail at home:

• Gin – Whatever gin you like will work in this cocktail! I’ve tried it with Ford’s Gin and Plymouth Gin and both were great. Both are juniper forward, which is perfect for pairing with the green chartreuse.
• Cucumber juice – Here’s where the spring flavors really come in. If you don’t have a juicer or a juice/smoothie place near you to pick up some fresh cucumber juice, you can quickly whip up your own with a blender or just use a grater, then place the grated cucumber into a fine mesh strainer balanced over a bowl and add a pinch of salt to help extract the juice.
• Green chartreuse – Check out the block below for more deets on this yummy herbal liqueur.
• Lime juice – I’ve tried this recipe with lemon juice as well, but I definitely preferred the lime paired with the other flavors in the drink.
• Egg white – Egg whites are added to cocktails to give them a silky smooth mouth feel and a gorgeous foam on top. And hey, a little extra protein never hurt 😉
• Simple syrup – A little bit of simple syrup helps balance out all the acidity from the chartreuse and lime juice. You can definitely play with the ratio of simple syrup to match your tastes, but I don’t recommend skipping it entirely.

Recipe